In the first article of my blog i thought it would make sense to cover an introduction to the humble bee. Many simply do not know where to start and sometimes even the basics can be overlooked. I will also go through topics such as general information on the bee, types of bees, the declining population of bees and what you can do to help. All this information will hopefully give a good foundation to anyone interested in bees and also those looking to start bee keeping. I hope you enjoy!
First, a little about myself and my background.
I have had a fascination with wildlife in general from an early age. Those long days spent in the garden collecting various creepy crawlies and walking through woodland identifying various flora and fauna, were just the start to a life ling obsession. As i grew up i began to focus my attention on bees, bumble bees to start with. I found them truly fascinating! the way they went about their business, from flower to flower collecting pollen really intrigued me. As i researched more and more this naturally led me down the path of bee keeping and seeing how i could play my part in helping the drastically declining bee populations that we had.
The most common bee that you will often see in your garden is the western honey bee. Their colonies can contain as many as 80,000 bees which includes one queen and many workers and drones. The queen is the only bee in the colony that will reproduce and she is the mother to all the drones and workers plus future queen bees. Many people do not realize that there are a staggering 20,000 different types of bee across the world! You may also be lucky enough to see the occasional bumble bee visiting your garden. They are large and hairy really making them stand out from any other flying insect! They do not store food in the form of honey. The small amount of that they collect and produce is used to feed the queen and the new larvae. The bumble bees most important and crucial role within the Eco system is pollination. Without them we would not have many of the simple fruit and veg that we take for granted everyday. They really do play an integral part in our lives. Compared to the honey bee, bumble bees can have colonies as small as just 50 bees There are many things we can do to invite more of these bumble bees to our garden that i will cover later in this article.
The numbers of many species of bees are currently due to factors such as disease, habitat loss and pesticides. Research has shown that bees feeding on oil seed rape for example, have a reduced sperm rate of up to 40% due to an insecticide that is ingested. Their numbers have been in a slow decline for longer than many realize although this has only been highlighted more recently.
The good news is that there are some simple steps that we can all take to play our part in helping boost bee numbers in our gardens. We can plant bee friendly plants and even go one step further by introducing native plants. This ensures that the visiting bees have a variety of native flowers from which they can collect nectar and feed upon.
Stop the use of any chemicals and man made pesticides. Try to keep things natural and steer clear of anything that a bee could ingest and become poisoned by. There are many 'friendly' approaches to insecticides and herbicides now that are equally as effective if not more so.
allowing a small area of your garden to simply grow wild is a massive benefit not only to the bees but also a whole host of other wildlife and creepy crawlies. Adding a mix of native seeds (including weeds!) will benefit all those that feed upon it and help to attract more bees into your garden. You can even build a bee hotel! plans for this can be found via a simple search online. This is one that the whole family can get involved with!
Another simple step that i have always found to help is to simply raise awareness. I have many friends and colleagues who are lovers of wild life and the countryside yet seem to know very little about the plight of the bee populations. To remedy this i have regularly bought little bee related gifts as birthday presents for example. It heightens their interest and gets them interested in the seemingly 'random' gift they have received. This opens the door for them to learn more and in turn do what they can to help. I once bought a colleague a simple bumble bee pendent from The Humble Bumble and in what seemed like no time at all they became a fully fledged bee keeper, finally finding a use for the meadow that they owned at the back of their house!
After learning so much and gaining a simple respect for bees, its only natural that many choose to go down the path of researching bee keeping as a hobby. Even those who don't think they have the space can take whats now known as 'urban' beekeeping! With the internet and so many online communities to reach out to, beekeeping is no longer as daunting as it once seemed. With a small amount of investment in time and money you can be up and running producing your own liquid gold in no time at all! The initial equipment needed is simple - a hat and veil, a hive of some description (there are many types) some gloves and an apron or shirt. Oh, and some bees! These can be bought easily enough and you just need to search for a local keeper in your area. As you progress along your beekeeping journey you will undoubtedly learn more as well as build a larger collection of equipment. Keep in touch with other experienced keepers or even join a local club or society to learn more. You can now even take courses in beekeeping that will give you all the knowledge and experience as well as a certification at the end of the module.